WORCESTER, MA -- Quarterback Justin Wells (Jay, ME) connected with Will Ziegenfus (Oakland, ME) on a two-yard touchdown pass with 5:58 remaining to lift WPI to a 19-16 Homecoming victory over Union in Liberty League football action on Saturday afternoon.
WPI, which defeated the Dutchmen for the first time since 1999, improves to 4-1 overall and 1-1 in conference play. Union dips to 1-3 on the season and 0-2 in Liberty League action.
The touchdown capped an 11-play 68-yard drive for the Engineers that took nearly six minutes off the clock. Union then embarked on a 12-play drive of their own but saw a potential game-tying 27-yard field goal sail just wide left with 32 seconds remaining. Earlier, just before WPI's scoring drive, Union's
Zach Epley (Southampton, NY) had connected on a 27-yard field goal to give the Dutchmen a 16-13 edge.
Wells connected on 16-of-28 passes on the day for 196 yards and two touchdowns. He added 126 yards of rushing on 15 carries, including a 58-yard touchdown scamper early in the third quarter that allowed the Crimson and Gray rally from a 13-6 halftime deficit to tie the game at 13-13.
The Dutchmen received an outstanding performance from tailback
Chris Coney (Ft. Lauderdale, FL). The sophomore rushed for a game-high 127 yards on 32 carries. It was Coney's third 100 yard rushing game this season.
Kevin Rautenstrauch (West Seneca, NY) led the Union defensive charge with 11 tackles while
Joe Catalano (Albany, NY) chipped in with seven stops.
Conner Cohn (Wantagh, NY) notched the only sack of the day for either squad.
Freshman quarterback
Andrew Connelly (Foxboro, MA) tossed a pair of first half touchdown passes for the Dutchmen, including a 33-yard to classmate
Justin Gallo (Brunswick, NY) in the first quarter and a seven-yard scoring strike to
Jared Gourrier (New Orleans, LA) early in the second quarter. The scores came after WPI had opened the scoring when Wells hit Aaron Champagne (Fairfield, ME) with a five-yard swing pass around the right end.
John Graziosi (Attleboro, MA) led the WPI defensive effort with 11 tackles, including three for loss, and a forced fumble. The sophomore earned the Bob Pritchard Award as the Most Outstanding Lineman while Wells took the honor as the Most Outstanding Back. Adam Power (Tewkesbury, MA) and Stefan Nicotra (Wyoming, RI) also distinguished themselves with 10 and nine tackles respectively.
WPI returns to the gridiron on Saturday in a 4:00pm conference matchup against the Merchant Marine Academy. Union is also back in action on Saturday, playing at Hobart in a 1:00 pm game.
